I was doing a bio of Ikuo Shimano for the Baseball-Reference Bullpen; his japanbaseballdaily bio mentioned that he beat an umpire in 1982 and he was suspended. Not being fluent in Japanese, I can't figure out who the umpire was from what the Japanese Wikipedia has. I think Isao Okada, but can't tell for certain. Can anyone confirm the umpire and also the circumstances?

The setting is the top of the 7th inning on August 31, 1982, in a game between the Yokohama Taiyo Whales vs. Hanshin Tigers at Yokohama Stadium. With Taira Fujita at the plate, he hit a fly ball that went over third baseman Mitsugu Ishibashi, landed in fair territory, then rolled foul between home plate and third base. Third base umpire Wataru Washiya called the ball foul.

Hanshin's third base coach, Akiteru Kohno, objected, claiming that the ball hit Ishibashi's glove in fair territory before rolling foul. Washiya ruled that the ball did not touch Ishibashi's glove, and a heated argument ensued.

By "heated arguement," I mean to say that first base coach Ikuo Shimano, battery coach Takeshi Shibata, and pretty much the entire Hanshin bench of players flowed out of the third base dugout and surrounded umpire Washiya in foul territory. Hanshin fans throughout the left side of the stadium were calling for blood.

With umpire Washiya completely surrounded, coaches Shimano and Shibata started beating and kicking the umpire. Home plate umpire Isao Okada (who played for the Tigers from 1950 to 1955) attempted to break in to stop the fight. He was immediately assaulted and, crouched on the ground, was also beat and kicked by the two coaches.

It was reported that Hanshin player Akinobu Mayumi was the only person trying to restrain Shibata.

Well after being ejected, coaches Shimano and Shibata continued their violence against the two umpires.

Once order was restored, head umpire Okada proclaimed, "Can the game go on with such a violent team as this?" He then thumped his chest protector (the large one that the home plate umpire used to have to hold out in front of him) and led the umpire crew off the field.

Hanshin's manager, Motoo Andoh, apologized for the behavior of his coaches and, after a 10 minute break, the game resumed without Shimano and Shibata coaches. The umpires were prepared to call the game a forfeiture on behalf of the Tigers, but resumed for the fans.

In the end, a 9th inning 2-run home run by Fujita, the batter who hit the fly ball ruled foul that started the incident, turned out to be the difference in the game, Hanshin winning 3-1.

As further background, the Tigers felt that the umpire crew were against them throughout the game. The game tying run in the 4th inning came across on a balk call against Hanshin starter Masashi Fujiwara resulting in an argument causing an 8 minute delay. In the top of the 5th, Tiger batter Greg Johnston kicked dirt over the plate in arguing a pitch call, then being ordered by home plate umpire Okada to clean the plate.

After the game, umpires Okada, Washiya, and second base umpire Shoji Tezawa filed a complaint with the Kanagawa Prefectural police department. For injuries sustained in the brawl, Okada was given 2 weeks leave and Washiya 1 week. The two coaches were suspended for 10 days by the team and fined 50,000 yen each by the Yokohama Public Prosecutors Office.

The Central League chairman, Ryuji Suzuki, and NPB commissioner, Takeso Shimoda, put Shimano and Shibata on "indefinite suspension," overriding Hanshin's 10 days. Suzuki did note that it was not a ban for life. The suspension was lifted the following spring and Hanshin immediately re-signed the two coaches.

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